2002 – 2003

Men’s Tennis

Captain Andrew Boyd

This has been an excellent term for the tennis team, with success both in the league and in Cuppers. After a disappointing defeat by St Edmund Hall in the first fixture of the season, Queen’s were unbeaten in the remaining matches, thanks largely to the wealth of ability found in the new first year. Hodges, Tyson, Butterfield and Aggarwal all played to a high standard throughout the term, ensuring, together with the ever-present Shoesmith, a strong league performance. The Cuppers competition, held later in the term, was an outstanding success, with Queen’s deservedly beating Exeter 11 sets to 7 in the final. Hodges, Macrae and Humm each played well to usher Queen’s into the last round. The first pair of Blues players Stuckey and Dorr was undefeated all day, winning their six sets with relative ease. Lawton joined Tyson in a great second pair, with Hughes and Shoesmith making up the third. Each team proved stronger than their opponents and Queen’s won an entertaining match in front of a large crowd of college supporters to complete an almost perfect term’s tennis for the College.

Women’s Tennis

Captain Jill Baraclough

Women’s tennis has been particularly popular this season, the weather smiling on us both for practices and matches. Weekly practices on Sunday afternoons were well attended and, as a result, two teams were entered in the league and one in Cuppers, with all three being very successful. In the early matches especially, newcomers Louise Dent, Louise Jarvis, Karishma Desai and Susan Lowrey quickly formed excellent pairings, which by and large sealed the fate of the first few league matches and two rounds of Cuppers ties in our favour. As the term progressed, the added experience of Sarah Lane, Ellie Dewhurst and Thea Houghton was very welcome, especially with first-year exams looming. Playing most matches at home only seemed to increase our success, with Martin’s legendary teas no doubt aiding us in our mission to reach the top! A change to the way the league operates resulted in our facing a difficult tie against New College in the knockout stage. Despite our best efforts, the match was lost narrowly on extremely close-fought games and tie-breaks. Greater success came in the Cuppers competition. After meeting and beating Worcester in the quarter-finals, Queen’s disposed of Wadham in the semi-finals. Unfortunately, after another thrilling encounter, the team lost to New College in the final. Despite this disappointment, the team had an enjoyable and exciting term’s tennis.